Automated synthesizers capable of performing continuous reactions are particularly useful in combinatorial chemistry. These synthesizers include a robot liquid handling device for delivering chemical reactants to wells in a reaction block for stepwise syntheses.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,746,982 discloses an apparatus for automated synthesis wherein one or more robot arms mounted on a track dispenses reagents at x,y axes located on a reaction block containing a plurality of reaction wells. The reaction block described therein is mounted on a stationary table optionally having an orbital mixer. U.S. Pat. No. 6,264,891 described an apparatus for concurrent synthesis wherein reaction blocks are mounted in fixed positions on a turntable in a concentric circle equidistant from the rotatable axis. The turntable rotates in an incremental stepwise fashion to docking stations which perform physical steps in sequence. Among the limitations to the aforementioned devices is that the incremental physical steps performed on the reaction wells is one dimensional for a series of rows along an x,y axis containing wells. Lacking in the art is an apparatus which can perform synthetic physical steps for both rows and columns, for one or more reaction blocks each mounted on a turntable.